Sarfaraz Khan made his presence felt as a substitute fielder for the injured Rishabh Pant on Day 3 of the second Test between India and Sri Lanka at SSC Stadium in Colombo. The right-handed batter kept the energy high at short leg, and his constant chatter appeared to play a part in the dismissals of Sri Lanka captain Dhananjaya de Silva and Niroshan Dickwella on Tuesday.
Dhananjaya was the first to feel the heat from Sarfaraz. Just before Manav Suthar was about to bowl, there was some movement behind the bowler’s arm, which forced the Sri Lankan captain to stop the proceedings.
Sarfaraz, standing at short leg, then started talking to Dhananjaya and urged him to stop worrying about the movement behind the screen.
“Nothing is there, bro. You are looking there. You are just wasting time, bro. Don’t be scared. You are the captain. Come on, bro,” he was heard as saying on the stump mic.
“Why are you worried about that side. Look straight,” he added.
A few deliveries later, Dhananjaya was back in the pavilion. The incident of Sarfaraz Khan's sledging goes viral on social media; here is the video.
On the fifth ball of the 35th over, Suthar tossed the ball up around middle. Dhananjaya tried to defend but managed only a faint outside edge. The ball then deflected off Dhruv Jurel’s gloves and went towards slip.
KL Rahul had a couple of attempts before finally completing the catch. Dhananjaya departed for 8 off 14 balls, giving India their fifth wicket.
Sarfaraz Khan Gets Under Dickwella’s Skin
After Dhananjaya and Pasindu Sooriyabandara were dismissed, Niroshan Dickwella walked in with Sri Lanka under pressure. Mohammed Siraj immediately went for the short-ball approach, a tactic that had also worked during the second innings of the first Test.
Sarfaraz once again got involved from his position at short leg. He exchanged a few words with Dickwella, with both players seen smiling during the exchange.
However, Sarfaraz had the last laugh.
Dickwella eventually got a glove on a delivery that did not appear particularly threatening and Dhruv Jurel took a straightforward catch behind the stumps. His dismissal left India in a strong position.
Earlier, India declared their first innings at 503/9 after choosing to bat first. Devdutt Padikkal and Dhruv Jurel scored centuries for the visitors, while Asitha Fernando was Sri Lanka’s best bowler with four wickets.